Friday, March 02, 2007

Pottery Barn Rule For The National Guard?

Nearly 90 percent of Army National Guard units in the United States are rated "not ready" -- largely as a result of shortfalls in billions of dollars' worth of equipment -- jeopardizing their capability to respond to crises at home and abroad, according to a congressional commission that released a preliminary report yesterday on the state of U.S. military reserve forces.

The report found that heavy deployments of the National Guard and reserves since 2001 for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and for other anti-terrorism missions have deepened shortages, forced the cobbling together of units and hurt recruiting.

"We can't sustain the [National Guard and reserves] on the course we're on," said Arnold L. Punaro, chairman of the 13-member Commission on the National Guard and Reserves, established by Congress in 2005.

Bush of course has totally misuesed the Natioanl Guard, which could have some serious impact on states in case of natural disasters. We escaped this hurricane season with an under average year, but what happens next year when National Guard units are simply unprepared to help out because of being broken by Bush's folly? We get an earthqueake in California, a wilfire out in the mountain west, and hurricanes in the gulf coast. Are the guard units from each of the states going to be able to properly respond? Heck, we could even have a terrorist event. But since we are fighting them over there, they can't help as well over here.